Operation Manual

GNU LESSER GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE

Version 2.1, February 1999

51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301, USA

Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies of this license document,

but changing it is not allowed.

[This is the first released version of the Lesser GPL. It also counts as the successor of the

GNU Library Public License, version 2, hence the version number 2.1.]

Preamble

The licenses for most software are designed to take away your freedom to share and change

it. By contrast, the GNU General Public Licenses are intended to guarantee your freedom

to share and change free software--to make sure the software is free for all its users.

This license, the Lesser General Public License, applies to some specially designated

software packages--typically libraries--of the Free Software Foundation and other authors

who decide to use it. You can use it too, but we suggest you first think carefully about

whether this license or the ordinary General Public License is the better strategy to use

in any particular case, based on the explanations below.

When we speak of free software, we are referring to freedom of use, not price. Our Gen-

eral Public Licenses are designed to make sure that you have the freedom to distribute

copies of free software (and charge for this service if you wish); that you receive source

code or can get it if you want it; that you can change the software and use pieces of it in

new free programs; and that you are informed that you can do these things.

To protect your rights, we need to make restrictions that forbid distributors to deny you

these rights or to ask you to surrender these rights. These restrictions translate to certain

responsibilities for you if you distribute copies of the library or if you modify it.

For example, if you distribute copies of the library, whether gratis or for a fee, you must

give the recipients all the rights that we gave you. You must make sure that they, too, re-

ceive or can get the source code. If you link other code with the library, you must provide

complete object files to the recipients, so that they can relink them with the library after

making changes to the library and recompiling it. And you must show them these terms

so they know their rights.

We protect your rights with a two-step method: (1) we copyright the library, and (2) we

offer you this license, which gives you legal permission to copy, distribute and/or modify

the library.

Chapter 13 - Third party software426

GNU LESSER GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE